Refuge welcomes resident volunteers
The “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society-Friends of the Refuge reported that another couple, out of three, recently arrived to work as Resident Volunteers this season at the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel.
The refuge welcomed Vicki and Dale Hansen on Nov. 27, arriving from their hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Vicki Hansen, a retired paralegal at a law firm, and Dale Hansen, a former union pipefitter doing HVAC building automation, have been traveling from California to Florida as resident volunteers. Recently, they did a stint at the Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida, where Dale Hansen tracked pythons with biology rangers and Vicki Hansen did environmental education.
At the refuge, Vicki Hansen will work in visitor services and Dale Hansen in maintenance.
“We just got here, and the enthusiasm of the people we have met so far has been awesome,” she said.
Although Hurricane Ian caused intense destruction to the maintenance area where Resident Volunteers park their RVs in exchange for helping out with workloads, three spots remain with utilities.